David Eggen (original) (raw)

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Canadian politician

The HonourableDavid EggenECA MLA
Eggen in 2015
Minister of Education
In officeMay 24, 2015 – April 30, 2019
Premier	Rachel Notley
Preceded by	Gordon Dirks
Succeeded by	Adriana LaGrange
Member of theLegislative Assembly of Alberta for Edmonton-North West(Edmonton-Calder; 2004–2019)
Incumbent
Assumed office April 23, 2012
Preceded by	Doug Elniski
In officeNovember 22, 2004 – March 3, 2008
Preceded by	Brent Rathgeber
Succeeded by	Doug Elniski
Personal details
Born	David Manson Eggen1962 (age 61–62)
Political party	New Democratic
Spouse	Somboon Eggen[1]
Alma mater	University of Alberta
Occupation	Teacher
Portfolio	Minister of Education, Minister of Culture

David Manson Eggen ECA MLA (born 1962) is a Canadian politician. He is a Member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta, in 2019 he was elected as the member representing Edmonton-North West. He previously served three terms as the member representing Edmonton Calder from 2004-2008[2] and then again from 2012-2019. In 2014, Eggen ran in the NDP leadership election, where he placed second.[3] He served as the Minister of Education and Minister of Culture and Tourism in Premier Notley's NDP government from 2015-2019.[4]

Born in 1962,[5] Eggen was educated at the University of Alberta where he received a Bachelor of Education degree in 1984.[2] Eggen then went to Zimbabwe, where he taught for three years, after which he returned to Edmonton, where he taught at local schools from 1990 to 2004.[2] He also coached a wide variety of sports for high school and community teams. In 1996 and 1997, he also served as an education consultant, living and working with the Wat Dhammamongkol Temple in Bangkok, Thailand. He volunteered as an animator at Fort Edmonton Park.

Eggen has worked in health care as an executive director of Friends of Medicare, and was a member of the Canadian Health Coalition’s board of directors.[2] He also acted provincial trustee with the Forum for Young Albertans and a chair leader of the Canadian Paraplegic Association.[2] He was also a member of the Diversity, Equity and Human Rights committee for the Alberta Teachers' Association and an amateur musician. He lives in Edmonton with his wife.

Eggen was first elected to the Legislative Assembly of Alberta as a New Democrat in the 2004 Alberta general election, narrowly defeating incumbent Progressive Conservative Brent Rathgeber. He was the first NDP representative elected in Edmonton-Calder since 1993, increasing his party's share of the vote from 18% to 36%. His victory was widely attributed to a two-year canvassing campaign in the run-up to the election. He served as the NDP's critic for Agriculture and Food, Environment, K-12 Education, Sustainable Resource Development, and Tourism and Culture.

He was defeated in the 2008 election by Progressive Conservative Doug Elniski. After this defeat Eggen assumed the Alberta Executive Director's position for Friends of Medicare, an advocacy group that supports public healthcare.[6] Eggen regained his seat in the 2012 provincial election and retained it with a greatly increased margin in the 2015 election.

After the 2015 election Eggen was sworn in as the Minister of Education and as the Minister of Culture and Tourism. He maintained his position as Minister of Education until the 2019 election but was replaced by Ricardo Miranda as Minister of Culture and Tourism.[2][7] As of June 21, 2024, he serves as the Whip of the Official Opposition caucus.

2001 general election

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2004 general election

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2008 general election

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2012 general election

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2015 general election

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2019 general election

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2023 general election

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David Eggen was sworn into Cabinet on May 24, 2015 as part of the NDP government led by Rachel Notley. There had been speculation since the election that Eggen would receive a large portfolio in Cabinet. He was appointed as Minister of Education and Minister of Culture and Tourism.

In fall 2015, Eggen introduced Bill 8, a proposal to reform the collective bargaining structure for public school teachers in Alberta. Bill 8 proposes to introduce a two-table bargaining system, similar to the structure in Ontario, where the provincial government would handle big items like salary and local boards would negotiate local issues. The existing system sees all issues bargained locally.

There was criticism that school boards were not adequately consulted, but documents provided by Eggen's office to the media detailed consultations that had taken place in September and October 2015.[9]

1. ^ "Edmonton New Democrat David Eggen is first to join Alberta's only interesting political leadership race". May 27, 2014.
2. ^ a b c d e f Eggen, David (July 12, 2019). "Elected Members". Legislative Assembly of Alberta.
3. ^ "David Eggen to seek leadership of Alberta NDP". Edmonton Journal. May 25, 2014. Retrieved May 25, 2014.
4. ^ "Rachel Notley sworn in as Alberta premier, reveals cabinet," CBC News May 24, 2015.
5. ^ The optimist: Two-time MLA David Eggen says political winds are shifting Klinkenberg, Marty. Edmonton Journal [Edmonton, Alta] 11 Oct 2014: B.4.
6. ^ Loome, Jeremy (June 10, 2008). "Ex-MLA now heads Friends of Medicare". Edmonton Sun. Retrieved 2008-06-10. [_dead link_]
7. ^ Bellefontaine, Michelle (2 February 2016). "Alberta Premier Rachel Notley announces six new cabinet posts". CBC News. Retrieved 18 October 2022.
8. ^ "39 - Edmonton-North West". officialresults.elections.ab.ca. Elections Alberta. Retrieved June 8, 2023.
9. ^ "Education minister moves forward with Bill 8, despite requests for delay | Metro News". Archived from the original on 2015-12-08. Retrieved 2015-12-04.